Dr. Adeyinka Okunade

During my postgraduate days at UNILAG, there was this guy who would always drive to lectures in his 2004 Toyota Corolla. He worked with FAAN. Whenever exams were approaching, he would always want to borrow my notes and make photocopies because he liked the way I structured it. I had a way of highlighting important points and adding side notes, some of which would later turn out to be likely exam questions. We had this particular course he had been battling with. At that point, his mindset was simply to write the exam, pass somehow, and probably end up with an E. So I picked him up. We would have WhatsApp voice calls while going through the course materials together. We did it consistently, and we both ended up with an A. He would usually tell me that if I ever needed anything, I shouldn't hesitate to let him know and that he would come through for me. Most times, I ignored the offer because I was also doing fine on my own. About two years after our master's programme, I had a cousin who had graduated for years but was still struggling to secure employment. He had twice gotten a fully funded scholarship in the US and was denied visa twice. He also tried Australia and was denied three times. He eventually gave Belgium a shot, got admission, and was required to present a blocked account, meaning he needed to show proof of a certain amount of money in a Belgian account. The amount was approaching €13,000. He had nothing, and his resumption deadline was fast approaching. He reached out to me. Even though he had never told me about his plans to travel, I decided to do everything I could. I reached out to two of my friends in the UK, but they couldn't help because they were still trying to establish themselves t ground. I also contacted someone in the US who was on a fully funded scholarship. He told me his monthly stipend wasn't even up to $2,000 and that, after paying rent, he had less than $300 left. Then something told me to reach out to my old master's classmate from UNILAG. I narrated the situation to him. He asked me straight up, "How much do you need?" I told him we needed €14,000 in a Belgian account. He asked, "Will that be enough?" The next day, he provided €14,000. A few weeks later, my cousin's visa was approved. While he was heading to the airport, my same friet also gave him ₦2 million in cash, this time, a gift. Today, my cousin has emmigrated to the US, happily married to an American woman who is also a scholar like him. They now have two children. I have also become his go-to person for almost every thing he needs done in Nigeria. When he bought his first home in Maryland, Mende, Lagos, I was the one who went for the inspection, received the funds in my account for a Duplex, and handled the closing deal for him. There is hardly anything I need today that my cousin wouldn't go the extra mile to do for me. Life has a funny way of bringing people back into your life. Sometimes, the person you think you are helping today may become the person who changes your life tomorrow. Never underestimate the value of being genuinely useful to people. Be useful. Be kind. Build genuine relationships. You never know when life will bring the same person back to you in a different season.